Child and Family Development

Child and Family Development Pediatric Therapy Services (formerly WildWorks Therapy)

The slides above show you the neuroscience-here's what we see in real time: when children feel genuinely understood and ...
09/09/2026

The slides above show you the neuroscience-here's what we see in real time: when children feel genuinely understood and safe, they stop fighting their own nervous systems and start building skills that stick.

Compliance-focused approaches might quiet a child in the moment, but they don't rewire how a child's brain processes emotion, regulation, or connection.

We've watched kids move from meltdown spirals to self-awareness.
From scripted responses to spontaneous language.
From rigid routines to flexible problem-solving.

That's not behavior management - that's developmental progress rooted in relationship and joy.

Ready to explore what that looks like for your child? Learn more about our DIR/Floortime and therapy options.

Self-awareness isn't taught - it's noticed. When your child names an emotion mid-play, adjusts because they see their im...
09/05/2026

Self-awareness isn't taught - it's noticed. When your child names an emotion mid-play, adjusts because they see their impact, or asks for what they need, that's real developmental progress. We know how easy it is to miss these moments when you're waiting for the compliance milestones traditional therapy focuses on. The shifts we're talking about? They emerge naturally when play feels safe, responsive, and joyful. That's where DIR/Floortime lives. Learn more about how we build these foundations.

Trying a new food can feel like a much bigger challenge when everything on the plate feels unfamiliar.One simple way to ...
09/03/2026

Trying a new food can feel like a much bigger challenge when everything on the plate feels unfamiliar.

One simple way to lower the pressure is to include at least one food your child already knows and reliably eats.

Then, place a new or less-preferred food nearby without making eating it the goal.

Maybe they look at it.

Maybe they touch it.

Maybe it simply stays on the plate.

Those are all steps forward.

When mealtimes feel predictable and safe, children have more space to become curious about something new.

Our sensory-based feeding therapy uses gentle, playful food exploration to help children build confidence around eating.

Book a free consultation to learn more about feeding therapy at Child & Family Development.

🐠 Sometimes the best learning happens beyond the therapy room. 🐢🦎We took our Day Program kids on a visit to the local pe...
08/17/2026

🐠 Sometimes the best learning happens beyond the therapy room. 🐢🦎

We took our Day Program kids on a visit to the local pet store—building on their curiosity about animals and bringing their interests into a real-life experience.

In DIR/Floortime, we don’t just ask, “What skill are we working on?” We also ask, “What is meaningful to this child, and how can we use that interest to support development?”

A love of fish, turtles, reptiles, or furry friends can become an opportunity to practice:

✨ Shared attention & engagement — discovering something exciting together
🗣️ Spontaneous communication — asking questions, making comments, and sharing discoveries
🧠 Flexible thinking — encountering new sights, sounds, smells, and experiences
💭 Connecting ideas — taking concepts from pretend play, books, and classroom activities into the real world
❤️ Regulation — navigating a new environment with the support of trusted adults
🤝 Social participation — moving through a community space together, waiting, observing, and interacting

Most importantly, experiences like these help children understand that learning isn’t something that only happens at a table or during a structured activity.

When we follow a child’s interests and expand them into meaningful real-world experiences, we create opportunities for children to connect what they already know with something new.

That’s developmental learning. That’s DIR/Floortime. 💛

Building Skills Through Connection.

Busy classrooms, frequent transitions, unpredictable noise, group expectations, and limited sensory support can be diffi...
08/14/2026

Busy classrooms, frequent transitions, unpredictable noise, group expectations, and limited sensory support can be difficult for some children to manage.

That does not mean your child is unwilling to participate or incapable of learning.

They may need an environment that better supports their nervous system.

Our therapeutic day program provides small-group guidance, sensory supports, relationship-based interaction, purposeful play, and individualized developmental goals.

The goal is not to make children fit into an environment that overwhelms them.

The goal is to create an environment where they can connect and grow.

🏴‍☠️ Ahoy, Mateys! The treasure must be protected!💰🗺️What looks like a group of little pirates guarding their treasure i...
08/14/2026

🏴‍☠️ Ahoy, Mateys! The treasure must be protected!💰🗺️

What looks like a group of little pirates guarding their treasure is actually a BIG developmental experience. 💛

In our DIR/Floortime Day Program, pretend play gives children opportunities to build skills through something that matters to them: connection, imagination, and FUN.

While our pirates are hiding treasure, protecting their ship, escaping the “bad guys,” and deciding who gets to be captain, they’re practicing:

🏴‍☠️ Symbolic thinking — turning ordinary objects and spaces into something entirely new
🗣️ Communication — sharing ideas, making plans, and telling others what happens next
🤝 Shared problem-solving — “How are we going to keep the treasure safe?”
🧠 Flexible thinking — adapting when another child adds a new idea to the story
❤️ Social-emotional development — negotiating roles, navigating disagreements, and staying connected
✨ FEDC 5 development — creating and expanding pretend ideas with emotional meaning

This is one of the things we love most about DIR/Floortime: play isn’t a break from learning. Play is where so much of the learning happens.

Our Day Program gives children the time, space, relationships, and support to turn a simple idea like “Let’s be pirates!” into a rich developmental experience.

Because sometimes the path to communication, flexible thinking, and meaningful connection starts with a treasure map. 🗺️💛

Building Skills Through Connection.

ChildDevelopment PlayBasedLearning LearningThroughPlay AutismAcceptance BuildingSkillsThroughConnection

A typical day in our DIR/Floortime Day Program is thoughtfully structured while remaining responsive to each child.Child...
08/03/2026

A typical day in our DIR/Floortime Day Program is thoughtfully structured while remaining responsive to each child.

Children participate in joyful relationship-based play, small-group social experiences, sensory activities, early learning opportunities, supported transitions, and therapeutic activities throughout the day.

Swimming is also incorporated three days each week, giving children another supportive environment for movement, regulation, confidence, and connection.

Families receive ongoing communication and guidance so the skills being developed can extend beyond the program and into everyday life.

07/22/2026

I Wish Someone Had Taught Me This...

You learned sensory processing.
You learned development.
You learned intervention techniques.

But no one taught you how to put it all together.

How do attachment, motor planning, regulation, executive functioning, sensory processing, and relationships actually fit together?

This 10-month Clinical Fellowship will completely change the way you see children.

✔ DIR/Floortime
✔ Sensory Processing
✔ Motor Planning
✔ Polyvagal Theory
✔ Attachment
✔ Developmental Clinical Reasoning

Founding Cohort opens now.

Only 50 Occupational Therapists will be accepted.

07/09/2026

💙 Big smiles. Big splashes. Big developmental wins.

Our DIR/Floortime Day Program just got even better—swimming is officially part of our weekly routine! 🌊

For children, the pool is so much more than a place to play. Water provides rich sensory experiences that can support regulation, body awareness, motor planning, coordination, strength, confidence, and social engagement. It naturally encourages shared joy, communication, problem-solving, and meaningful interactions with trusted adults and peers.

At Child & Family Development, we believe children learn best when they feel safe, connected, and joyful. That’s why our first swim sessions aren’t about perfect strokes or formal lessons—they’re about building trust, exploring, laughing, and creating positive experiences together.

Because when a child feels joy, their nervous system is ready to connect.
And when they’re connected, learning follows. 💙

Watching our kids light up in the water has been the highlight of our week, and we can’t wait to see their confidence continue to grow.

PediatricOT PlayBasedLearning RegulationBeforeExpectation AutismSupport DevelopmentalTherapy OccupationalTherapy ChildAndFamilyDevelopment

✨ DIR/Floortime Isn't Just Play ✨We hear this all the time - "Isn't Floortime just playing?"What many people don't reali...
06/24/2026

✨ DIR/Floortime Isn't Just Play ✨

We hear this all the time - "Isn't Floortime just playing?"

What many people don't realize is that DIR/Floortime is a comprehensive developmental framework designed to support communication, regulation, social-emotional growth, problem-solving, and relationships.

Yes, play is involved. But the goal isn't play itself.
The goal is development.

What may look like "just playing" is actually carefully designed therapeutic interaction rooted in developmental science.

If you've ever wondered what DIR/Floortime really is (and what it isn't), our newest blog breaks down the most common misconceptions and explains why connection is the foundation of development.

💙 Read the full blog through the link in our bio.

👇 What's one thing you've heard about DIR/Floortime that you're not sure is true?

Address

350 Ramapo Valley Road, Suite 100
Oakland, NJ
07436

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 7pm
Tuesday 9am - 7pm
Wednesday 9am - 7pm
Thursday 9am - 7pm
Friday 9am - 4pm

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